JP5268285B2 - Recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

A recording apparatus for discharging ink from a recording head arraying a plurality of nozzles to execute recording of an image includes a drive unit configured to form a group with a defined number of nozzles so as to include an adjacent nozzle in a different block and to execute time-division driving of the block according to a driving order corresponding to a recording mode, and a recording control unit configured to execute scan recording to a recording medium in a first recording mode or a second recording mode. Each pass of scan recording in the second recording mode is executed using nozzles smaller in number than a number of nozzles used to execute each pass of scan recording in the first recording mode. The recording apparatus further includes a driving control unit configured to control the drive unit wherein a drive interval of an adjacent nozzle in the same group corresponding to the first recording mode is larger than a drive interval of an adjacent nozzle in the same group corresponding to the second recording mode.

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a recording method for forming an image by dividing recording heads in which a plurality of nozzles are arranged into a plurality of groups and shifting the nozzle driving timing for each group to eject ink from the recording heads. .

  In recent years, with the widespread use of information equipment, recording devices, which are peripheral equipment, are also rapidly spreading. In particular, an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by scanning a recording medium with respect to a recording medium and ejecting ink droplets from the recording head at the time of scanning has various advantages. It has been adopted. Advantages of the ink jet recording apparatus include that it can be easily downsized and that color recording can be performed relatively easily.

  Among ink jet recording apparatuses, the thermal ink jet method that ejects ink using bubbles generated by thermal energy is relatively easy to integrate the ejection mechanism relatively, and the ejection ports for ejecting ink are arranged at high density. It is possible. By arranging the discharge ports at high density in this way, the recording apparatus can be reduced in size, and a higher quality image can also be recorded at high speed. In a recording apparatus using a recording head in which a large number of ejection openings are arranged in this way, a large-capacity power source is required in order to eject ink at the same timing by simultaneously driving all the ejection openings. For this reason, a time-division driving method is employed in which a predetermined number of ejection openings arranged in the recording head are sequentially driven within the period of the driving cycle. Specifically, all the ejection openings of the recording head are divided into several groups, and the driving timing is changed little by little for each group. By performing this time-division driving, the number of ejection ports that are driven simultaneously is reduced, so that the capacity of the power source necessary for the printing apparatus can be suppressed.

  On the other hand, since the ink jet recording system handles ink that is a fluid, various inconveniences may occur due to a hydrodynamic phenomenon. For example, when ink is ejected from a certain ejection port, the pressure fluctuation generated at that time is transmitted to the adjacent ejection port through the ink flow path, and the ink interface of the ejection port vibrates and becomes very unstable. Due to the vibration of the ink interface of the ejection port, the ejection port after ejection is not sufficiently filled with ink (ink refill is unstable). When ink is ejected in such an unstable state, the position at which the ink droplets land on the recording medium is shifted, or the amount of ink droplets ejected from the ejection port varies. If the landing position of the ink droplets is shifted or the ejection amount of the ink droplets is varied, the density of the image on the recording medium will be uneven, or the ground color of the recording medium will appear linear without any ink droplets adhering to the recording medium. White streaks may occur.

In order to solve ink discharge failure due to vibration at the ink interface, the method of bringing the level of negative pressure generated in the liquid chamber closer to normal pressure by optimizing the timing and discharge amount of time-division drive during ink discharge Yes (see Patent Document 1). In this Patent Document 1, ink is ejected in a stable state in which the amplitude of vibration of ink refill is small by bringing the negative pressure generated in the liquid chamber close to normal pressure by optimal time-division driving, and the drive frequency Techniques for improving the above are described.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-084911

  However, even when time-division driving is performed such that the amplitude of vibration of ink refill is small, the landing positions of ink droplets adhering to the recording medium may be shifted. In order to achieve high-quality recording required in recent recording apparatuses, there are recording heads provided with nozzle rows in which ejection openings are arranged at high density, and recording heads with increased nozzle rows. When ink droplets are successively ejected sequentially from the ejection ports of the recording head in which the ejection ports are arranged at a high density, an air flow rising between the recording head and the recording medium is generated by the previously ejected ink droplets, and a negative air flow is generated. Pressure state. The more ink droplets are located behind the continuously ejected ink droplets, the more the ejected ink droplets are affected by this air flow, and the ink droplets fly and the landing position shifts. As a result, white stripes are periodically generated for each group that is sequentially driven. By shifting the landing position of the ink droplet, the ink droplet does not adhere to a predetermined position of the recording medium, density unevenness occurs in the image, or a streak-like line of the ground color of the recording medium occurs. The quality will deteriorate. In addition, since this streak line becomes a white streak in a white recording medium, this streak line is referred to as a white streak in this specification.

  This white streak appears more conspicuously as the image duty recorded in one recording scan is higher. This is because when a high-duty image is recorded, the generated airflow increases, and the amount of deflection in the flying direction of the ink droplets increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus and a method for recording a high-quality image using recording heads arranged at high density.

  The present invention relates to a recording head in which a plurality of ejection ports for ejecting ink are arranged, a scanning unit that scans the recording head, a driving unit that divides the plurality of ejection ports into a plurality of blocks and performs time-division driving in units of blocks. In accordance with the number of ejections per unit time from a plurality of ejection ports when recording an image, vibrations at the ink interface that occur when ink is ejected from adjacent ejection ports Dispersion type in which ink is ejected after the continuous drive sequence in which ink is ejected before it is transmitted to the outlet and the vibration of the ink interface that occurs when ink is ejected from the adjacent ejection port begins to be transmitted to the ejection port. It is characterized by having a control means for controlling to drive in a time-sharing manner by selecting one of the driving orders.

  According to the configuration of the present invention, it is possible to record a high-quality image even by using recording heads arranged at high density by changing the block order in the time-division driving according to the recording conditions.

  Hereinafter, a recording apparatus applicable to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The ink jet recording apparatus 1 includes a carriage 2 capable of reciprocating scanning in the main scanning direction indicated by an arrow A, and a recording head 3 mounted on the carriage and capable of ejecting ink. An ink jet cartridge 4 that contains ink and supplies ink to the recording head 3 is detachably held by the recording head 3.

  The inkjet cartridge 4 contains black (K) ink and cyan (C), light cyan (LC), magenta (M), light magenta (LM), and yellow (Y) color inks, respectively. The recording head 3 has a nozzle row 3K for discharging black ink (not shown) and five nozzle rows 3C, 3LC, 3M, 3LM and 3Y used for discharging each color ink. Each of the nozzle rows 3K to 3Y has a configuration in which 1280 ejection openings are arranged.

  The carriage 2 is guided by a guide shaft 8 attached to the housing 7 so as to be movable in the direction of the arrow A in the figure, that is, in the main scanning direction, and is included in the drive mechanism 5 that transmits the drive force of the CR motor M1. 6 is connected. Accordingly, the carriage 2 reciprocates along the guide shaft 8 by rotating the CR motor M1 forward or backward. Further, a scale (encoder) 9 indicating an absolute position of the carriage 2 in the main scanning direction is disposed in the housing 7 in parallel with the guide shaft 8.

  A paper feed mechanism 10 is disposed on the back of the housing 7, and a plurality of recording media P of various sizes such as A4 size paper and postcard size paper are placed on a paper feed tray 11 included in the paper feed mechanism 10. It can be placed. The paper feed mechanism 10 includes a separation roller (not shown) driven by an LF motor M2 (not shown in FIG. 1), and the recording medium P is fed from the paper feed tray 11 by the separation roller, and the print head on the carriage 2 3 is supplied (conveyed) to a recording position opposite to 3.

  At the time of recording, the carriage 2 moves in the forward direction of the arrow A (for example, the moving direction from the home position side to the other end), and along with the movement, ink droplets are applied to the recording medium P from each nozzle of the recording head according to the image data. It is discharged toward. Recording with the movement of the carriage is also referred to as recording scanning. When the carriage 2 moves to the other end of the recording medium P, the separation roller rotates by a certain amount, thereby conveying the recording medium P by a predetermined amount in the direction of arrow B (sub-scanning direction, conveyance direction). Then, recording is performed again while moving the carriage 2 in the backward direction of the arrow A (for example, the moving direction from the other end to the home position side). In this way, an image is recorded on the entire recording medium by repeating the recording scan of the carriage and the conveying operation of the recording medium.

  The recording head 3 includes an electrothermal transducer (hereinafter referred to as a heater) for converting electrical energy into thermal energy. The ink is boiled by the heat energy generated by the heater, and the ink is ejected by utilizing the pressure change caused by the growth and contraction of bubbles due to the film boiling. The heater is provided in each of the ejection ports (also referred to as nozzles) constituting each of the nozzle rows 3K to 3Y, and a driving pulse voltage is applied to each heater in order to eject ink.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment is connected to a host computer (such as a PC), and records image data including image information and recording information created by using an application of the host computer. Reference numeral 200 denotes a CPU that controls the entire inkjet recording apparatus. The CPU 200 includes a ROM 201 and a random access memory (RAM) 202. The CPU 200 controls the recording apparatus by sending a drive command to each drive unit via the main bus line 205. An image input unit 203 and an image signal processing unit 204 are connected to the main bus line 205, and image information (image data) from the host computer is temporarily input to the image input unit 203 and then input to the image signal processing unit 204. And converted into an image signal (recording data) suitable for recording. The main bus line 205 is further connected to an operation unit 206 for performing various settings relating to recording by an operator and a recovery system control circuit 207 connected to a recovery device for the recording head. Furthermore, the main bus line 205 is connected to a head drive control circuit 215, a carriage drive control circuit 216, and a paper feed (conveyance) control circuit 217, which are each drive unit. In addition, a program for driving each drive unit is stored in the RAM 202 in advance, and the program for each drive circuit is activated in accordance with a drive command from the CPU 200.

  The recording device is connected to the host computer via an interface connected to the main bus. In the above description, the host computer and the recording apparatus are connected. However, in addition to the host computer, a digital camera or a flash memory can be connected. At this time, the recording device records an image captured by the digital camera or an image stored in the flash memory.

  The recovery system control circuit 207 is a circuit that controls a recovery device for maintaining a good discharge state of ink droplets from the recording head, and controls the drive of the recovery system motor 208, the blade 209, the cap 210, and the suction pump 211. . The recovery device includes a blade 209 that wipes off ink droplets and dust adhering to the ejection port surface, and a cap 210 that covers the ejection port surface when recording is not performed so that ink does not evaporate from the ejection port. Further, there is a suction pump 211 that suctions ink in the recording head by forcing a negative pressure in the cap and forcibly discharges the thickened ink in the nozzle.

  The head drive control circuit 215 drives the electrothermal transducer of the recording head 213 in accordance with the recording data, and controls normal ink ejection for preliminary ejection, image recording, and temperature control of the ink / recording head. The recording head 213 performs the operation. Further, a carriage drive control circuit 216 that controls the drive of the carriage, a paper feed control circuit 217 that controls a paper feed mechanism that feeds and transports the recording medium, and the like respectively drive the carriage motor and the carry motor according to the drive program. .

  FIG. 3 schematically shows the nozzle row (a) of the recording head, the drive signal (b) applied to each nozzle, and the flying ink droplet (c) ejected from each nozzle.

  In FIG. 3A, the nozzle array 500 of the ink jet recording head is composed of, for example, 32 nozzles, and these nozzles are divided into four sections (groups) from the first section to the fourth section, 8 nozzles from the top in the figure. ). Further, each of the eight nozzles in each section belongs to one of the eight drive blocks, and is driven in a time-division manner in units of blocks at the time of recording. In time-division driving, the nozzles in the same block are driven simultaneously. In the illustrated example, four nozzles 1, 9, 17, and 25 in the nozzle row 500 are the first drive block (also simply referred to as the first block), 8, 16, 24, and 32, respectively. Four nozzles are the second drive block. Similarly, the nozzles in each section are periodically assigned to each drive block such that the second, tenth, 18th and 26th nozzles are called the eighth drive block. In the case of time-division driving in which the first driving block to the eighth driving block are sequentially driven in ascending order, the heaters are sequentially driven by the pulse-like driving signal 300 shown in FIG. Correspondingly, the ink droplet 100 is ejected as shown in FIG.

  Next, the block configuration of the recording head and the drive signal to be applied in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, a nozzle row in which 1280 nozzles are arranged is used, and one section is formed by 20 nozzles. No. 0 nozzle to No. 19 nozzle are the first section, and the entire nozzle row is divided into 64 sections. The number of blocks (number of time divisions) recorded per unit time is 20, and the nozzles of No. 0, No. 20... Have block No. 0, and 64 nozzles of the same block No. are driven simultaneously. Ink is ejected. In FIG. 5, the sections and blocks have the same configuration. Although the 20 nozzles in one section are sequentially driven, they are all driven in one column. The recording head shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 has a configuration of a nozzle array in which 1280 nozzles are arranged in one row. However, a recording head in which nozzle arrays of 640 nozzles are shifted by two rows is used. Also good. At this time, the nozzles of the odd and even rows are arranged so as to be shifted in the main scanning direction. For each of the odd-numbered and even-numbered nozzle rows, one section may be constituted by 20 continuous nozzles, and the nozzles of each section may be block-driven for each nozzle row.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of time-division driving of the recording head. FIG. 4 sequentially drives from the upper nozzle to the lower nozzle with a drive timing of one, and is referred to as a continuous drive order here. For example, when ink is ejected from all nozzles, nozzle No. 0 is driven first, ink is ejected from nozzle No. 0, and then ink is ejected sequentially from No. 10, No. 1, No. 11 nozzle,. Is done. In FIG. 4, the actual driving is not performed continuously from the adjacent nozzles, but when the nozzles No. 0 to No. 9 are viewed, the recording is performed continuously from the adjacent nozzles. Here, the block driving shown in FIG. 4 is also in the continuous driving order. Of course, a continuous drive order may also be used in which adjacent nozzles in one section from the 0th nozzle to the 19th nozzle are sequentially driven.

  Conventionally, when ink is sequentially ejected from adjacent nozzles, it is known that the ink interface from adjacent nozzles is vibrated during ink ejection, and ink ejection from adjacent nozzles becomes unstable (also referred to as crosstalk). It was done. However, the inventors of the present invention have found that even when ink is sequentially ejected from adjacent nozzles as in the prior art, high-quality images can be recorded when the drive timing for sequentially driving the blocks is fast. It was. Referring to FIG. 4, since the ink discharge from the first nozzle is completed before the influence of the pressure fluctuation caused by the ink discharge when the ink is discharged from the zeroth nozzle is transmitted to the first nozzle, the first nozzle is also stable. Good ink can be discharged in a state. In this way, when driven sequentially at a fast timing, ink can be ejected from adjacent nozzles before the ink interface of adjacent nozzles vibrates, so even if ink is ejected sequentially from adjacent nozzles, Ink can be ejected in a stable state. As a result, it is possible to perform good recording with little landing position deviation and ink droplet ejection amount fluctuation. Furthermore, since ink can be ejected with a stable ink interface, the occurrence of mist and satellites can be reduced, the recording medium and the inside of the recording device can become dirty, and mist and satellites can adhere to the ejection port surface. It is possible to reduce the occurrence of defective discharge due to. In this embodiment, as an example of fast timing at which a high-quality image can be recorded even when ink is continuously ejected from adjacent nozzles, the heater is driven at intervals of about 4 μs from adjacent nozzles. Ink is ejected. Note that the drive timing of the adjacent nozzles may be set at an appropriate drive timing according to the characteristics of the ink, the characteristics of the recording head, and the like.

  However, as described above, when the drive timing at the time of sequential driving is increased and ink is sequentially ejected from adjacent nozzles, the ink is continuously ejected due to the influence of the air flow generated by the previously ejected ink droplets. The landing position of the ink droplet located behind the ink droplet will be twisted. Out of the continuously ejected ink droplets, the landing position of an ink droplet located relatively behind is referred to as end deflection. Referring to FIG. 4, when the number of ejections per unit time is large, the ink droplets of the 9th nozzle and the 19th nozzle are affected by the airflow generated by the continuous ejection of the ink droplets, respectively. It is drawn in the direction of the number nozzle. This edge misalignment causes a white streak-like line in which the ground color of the recording medium can be seen in the image by shifting the landing position of the portion corresponding to one end of the belt-like image recorded by the ink droplets ejected continuously. End up. This white stripe-like line is generated for each section during continuous time-division driving of the recording head, so that the white stripe interval is very narrow, that is, it is often generated at a low pitch. Therefore, it is easily recognized and leads to a decrease in image quality. This white streak is caused when a high duty image, a high duty recorded in one printing scan, a large amount of ink applied per unit area, a large number of ejections per unit time, etc. It appears more prominently when recorded under conditions. In particular, when the type of the recording medium is plain paper, the recording speed is given priority over the recording image quality, and therefore the number of times the recording head performs recording scanning (also referred to as the number of passes) tends to be small when forming an image in a predetermined region. It is in. Therefore, when the number of passes decreases, the recording amount (ink application amount) recorded in one recording scan increases, and white streaks appear prominently. When recording a photographic image on a recording medium such as photographic paper, the amount of ink applied to the recording medium is larger than when recording on plain paper, but a predetermined amount is given to prioritize the recording image quality. Recording is performed by increasing the number of times of scanning the same area. For this reason, the amount of recording recorded in one recording scan is small, and even if an end deviation occurs, the amount of twisting is small, and there is a tendency that it is not recognized as white streak.

  In addition to continuous block driving in which ink droplets are sequentially discharged from adjacent nozzle rows, there is a driving method in which ink is sequentially discharged from nozzles that are not adjacent to each other but separated from each other. An example of such time-division driving is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, a driving method in which ink is sequentially ejected from non-adjacent nozzles is referred to as a distributed driving order because the driving timings of the nozzles are dispersed. In the distributed drive shown in FIG. 5, when ink is ejected from all nozzles, first, nozzle No. 0 is driven and ink is ejected from nozzle No. 0, then nozzles No. 8, No. 4, No. 12, and No. 12 are used. Ink is sequentially ejected from.

  Conventionally, it has been known that when ink is ejected from nozzles that are not adjacent to each other at different drive timings, the ink interface of the nozzles does not vibrate and the ink is ejected in a stable state. In other words, when ink is ejected from a nozzle, the ink interface between adjacent nozzles vibrates, but it is thought that stable ink ejection is performed by ejecting ink from a remote nozzle with a stable ink interface. It was done. Then, it was considered that ink was ejected after the vibration at the ink interface due to ink ejection from the adjacent nozzles was settled.

  However, the inventors of the present invention, even when discharging ink sequentially from non-adjacent nozzles by distributed drive as in the prior art, depending on the drive timing of the block, the ink interface vibrates and becomes unstable. It has been found that ink is discharged. In other words, even if distributed drive is performed, if the block drive timing is fast, the ink interface vibrates due to pressure fluctuations due to ink ejection from adjacent nozzles, and the state is somewhat unstable before this vibration subsides Ink may be ejected. When ink is ejected in such a somewhat unstable state, the ink ejection amount varies. Furthermore, due to fluctuations in the ink ejection amount, small droplets (also referred to as mist and satellite) having a smaller capacity than normal ink droplets are likely to be generated, and ink landing is caused by the mist adhering to the ejection port surface. There is a risk of causing a discharge failure state where the position is twisted or non-discharge. Also, the mist easily floats in the recording device, and the sensor is recognized by the various sensors and the recording device main body, and the recording medium is soiled. In order to reduce the influence of the mist on the image, it is possible to maintain a good discharge state by performing a recovery process when a discharge failure state occurs. When ink is ejected in this distributed driving order when recording a high duty image, the amount of airflow generated is small compared to ink ejection in the continuous driving order. For this reason, the distributed driving order is less likely to cause end deviation, so that a higher quality image can be recorded. In the distributed drive, the ink ejection state due to the generation of mist is likely to be poorer than in the continuous drive. However, when the amount of recording per pass is large, when comparing the degradation of image quality due to the ink ejection failure state of the distributed drive and the degradation of image quality due to the end deviation of the continuous drive, the recorded image by the distributed drive Can obtain a higher quality image.

  Therefore, the present embodiment is characterized in that two types of block drive orders used for recording as shown in FIG. 6 are prepared, and the drive order is selected and changed according to the recording mode. In FIG. 6, the driving order A is the continuous driving order shown in FIG. 4, and the driving order B is the distributed driving order shown in FIG. In this embodiment, two types of driving orders, continuous type and distributed type, are prepared. However, other driving orders may be used. Furthermore, plural types of driving patterns are provided for each of the continuous type and the plurality of types. It may be used.

  The recording apparatus applicable to this embodiment has three types of recording modes according to image quality as shown in FIG. Recording in a balanced manner taking into account both the recording quality and the recording speed, the “fast” mode, which is a recording mode that prioritizes the recording speed over the recording image quality, and the “clean” mode, which is a recording mode that prioritizes the recording image quality over the recording speed. There are three types of “standard” mode, which is a recording mode. These recording modes can be set by a user using a printer driver installed in the host computer or an operation unit of the recording apparatus. Furthermore, the printer driver can determine the type of image or recording medium and select an appropriate recording mode.

  When the recording mode is the “fast” mode, recording is performed with two passes, which is a relatively small number of passes, and the carriage (CR) speed is set to a high speed of 33.33 inches / second. In a predetermined same area, the number of times of printing scanning (number of passes) is reduced in order to complete an image, and the carriage speed is set to a higher speed, thereby performing printing giving priority to the printing speed. When the recording mode is “clean” mode, recording is performed with 8 passes, which is a relatively large number of passes, and the carriage speed is set to a low speed of 25 inches / second. By increasing the number of recording scans for completing recording in a predetermined region and slowing the carriage speed, it is possible to perform high-quality recording in which landing position deviation is less likely to occur and density unevenness is less likely to occur. When the recording mode is the “standard” mode, the number of passes and the carriage speed are set to achieve both the recording speed and the recording quality.

  FIG. 7 shows a table for setting the block drive order according to the image quality. Although FIG. 7 shows an example in which the type of recording medium is plain paper, a plurality of recording modes can be selected in the same manner for other recording media, and the driving order is selected according to the recording mode. . This table is stored in the ROM 201 or the RAM 202.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in the “fast” mode, since the number of passes is small, the discharge amount per unit time tends to increase. For this reason, when the recording head is driven at a continuous driving timing, white stripes with a low pitch are likely to occur in the image, and the image quality is significantly reduced. Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the number of passes is small, a distributed drive order B in which end deviation hardly occurs is used. At this time, since it is affected by pressure fluctuation due to ink ejection, the amount of mist generated increases and the amount of mist adhering to the ejection port surface of the recording head also increases. As a result, due to the mist adhering to the ejection port surface, the ejection state in which the landing position is shifted or non-ejection occurs tends to be poor. However, since it is more difficult to recognize the deterioration of the image quality due to the defective discharge state than the deterioration of the image quality due to the end deviation, in the “fast” mode, the distributed drive order B in which the end deviation is less likely to occur. select.

  In the “standard” mode and “clean” mode, the number of passes is large, and the discharge amount per unit time tends to be small. Therefore, even if the print head is driven at the continuous drive timing, end deviation occurs. Hateful. Therefore, the continuous driving order A that is less affected by pressure fluctuation due to ink ejection is selected. High-quality images can be formed by recording under recording conditions in which end deviation and mist are unlikely to occur.

  The flow for setting the block drive order in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, when image data is received from the host computer, the recording mode of the received image data is acquired in step S810. Since the received image data includes a recording mode parameter, mode information is acquired. When the received image data does not include the recording mode parameter, the host computer or the recording apparatus is operated so as to acquire the recording mode set by the operation unit of the recording apparatus or to set the recording mode for the user. Displayed in the section. Next, in step S820, it is determined whether the recording mode acquired in step S810 is the “fast” mode. If it is determined that the recording mode is not the “fast” mode, the block driving order is changed to the driving order A in subsequent step S830. Set as. If it is determined in S820 that the recording mode is the “fast” mode, the block drive order is set as the drive order B in S840. In step S850, an image is recorded in accordance with the driving order set in steps S830 and 840.

  As described above, by changing the block driving order in the time-division driving according to the recording mode, it is possible to reduce the influence of the recorded image due to the occurrence of mist and white streaks and obtain a high-quality recorded image. Specifically, recording is performed in a distributed driving order in a speed-priority recording mode in which end deviation easily occurs, and recording is performed in a continuous driving order in an image quality priority recording mode.

(Other embodiments)
In the above-described embodiment, the block drive order of time-division drive is selected according to the recording mode. However, according to the amount of airflow generated during ink ejection that greatly affects the occurrence of mist and white streaks during image recording. It is good also as a structure which selects a block drive order. Specifically, the drive order is selected according to printing conditions such as the number of passes, the CR speed, the printing duty that is the ratio printed in one printing scan, and the number of nozzle rows formed on the printing head. Also good. Furthermore, since the amount of ink applied at the time of recording varies depending on the type of recording medium, and whether or not the recorded image is easily recognized as being deteriorated, it is greatly influenced by the type of recording medium. The driving order may be selected.

  FIG. 9 shows a flowchart for selecting the block drive order in the time-division drive according to the print duty printed in one print scan. The only difference from the flowchart of FIG. 8 is steps S815 and S825, and the others are the same as FIG.

  In FIG. 9, in S815, a recording duty per pass is acquired as a recording parameter. At this time, even if the average of the recording duty in each recording scan when recording on one recording medium is calculated as the recording duty per pass, the recording duty in each recording scan is acquired as the recording duty per pass. But either is fine. Next, in S825, it is determined whether the recording duty per pass is larger than a predetermined threshold. If the recording duty per pass is less than or equal to the predetermined threshold, the process proceeds to S830, and if it is greater than the predetermined threshold, the process proceeds to S840. As the recording duty recorded in one recording scan increases, the amount of ink ejected per unit time increases, and the air flow generated during ink ejection increases. For this reason, when the recording duty per pass becomes high, block driving is performed in a distributed driving order in which white streaks caused by airflow are unlikely to occur. In the present embodiment, 25% Duty can be used as an example of a threshold value (predetermined value) for setting the block drive order in S825.

  As described above, by setting the block drive order of time-division drive according to the recording conditions and recording parameters involved in the generation of airflow, even when recording an image using a recording head arranged at high density, The influence of the recorded image due to the occurrence of mist and white stripes can be reduced. Therefore, it is possible to record a higher quality image.

1 is a perspective view showing an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the electric constitution of an inkjet recording device. It is a schematic diagram which shows the drive signal in a time division drive, and the discharged ink droplet. It is a schematic diagram which shows the time division drive order A in embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the time division drive order B in embodiment of this invention. It is a table | surface which shows the drive order of several time division drive. It is the table | surface which matched the recording mode and the time division drive order. It is a flowchart which sets the block drive order in embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which sets the block drive order in other embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inkjet recording device 2 Carriage 3 Recording head 4 Inkjet cartridge P Recording medium 100 Ink droplet 215 Head drive control circuit 216 Carriage drive control circuit 300 Drive signal 500 Nozzle row

Claims (9)

A recording head in which a plurality of ejection openings for ejecting ink are arranged;
Scanning means for scanning the recording head;
Driving means for dividing the plurality of discharge ports into a plurality of blocks and driving in a time-sharing manner in units of blocks;
A storage device comprising:
Depending on the number of ejections per unit time from the plurality of ejection ports when recording an image, ink is ejected before the vibration of the ink interface generated when ink is ejected from the adjacent ejection ports is transmitted to the ejection ports. One of the continuous type driving order and the distributed type driving order in which ink is ejected after the vibration of the ink interface generated when ink is ejected from the adjacent ejection port starts to be transmitted to the ejection port. A recording apparatus comprising control means for selecting a driving order and controlling to perform time-division driving.   The control means selects the continuous driving order when the number of ejections per unit time is the first number of ejections, and the number of ejections per unit time is larger than the first number of ejections. 2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the number of ejections is 2, the distributed driving order is selected. Further comprising setting means for setting a recording mode when recording the image from a plurality of recording modes having different recording qualities,
Said control means on the basis of the recording mode set by the setting means, the recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that selects the driving order. Said control means, based on the number of scans of said recording head when recording on the same area of the recording medium, a recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that selects the driving order.   The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit selects the driving order for the time-division driving based on a scanning speed of the recording head. Said control means, based on the type of recording medium used in recording the image recording apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that selects the driving order. Wherein the each of the plurality of discharge ports, a recording apparatus according to electrical energy to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that electrothermal converters for converting the thermal energy is provided. A recording head having a plurality of ejection openings for ejecting ink and a scanning unit that scans the recording head, the plurality of ejection openings are divided into a plurality of blocks, and time-division driving is performed in units of blocks to record an image. A recording method of a recording apparatus for performing
Depending on the number of ejections per unit time from the plurality of ejection ports when recording an image, the vibration of the ink interface that occurs when ink is ejected from the adjacent ejection ports in accordance with the driving order of time-division driving. Dispersion type in which ink is ejected after the continuous drive sequence in which ink is ejected before it is transmitted to the outlet and the vibration of the ink interface that occurs when ink is ejected from the adjacent ejection port begins to be transmitted to the ejection port. A recording method comprising: a step of selecting one of the driving orders and controlling to perform time-division driving. In the controlling step, when the number of ejections per unit time is the first number of ejections, the continuous driving order is selected, and the number of ejections per unit time is larger than the first number of ejections. 9. The recording method according to claim 8 , wherein in the case of the second ejection number, the distributed driving order is selected.

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